The World of Vice CityThe point of this
game is escape--escape into a lifestyle that most of us will never experience.
That said, Rockstar has done a beautiful job diversifying the ways you can
escape into this huge adventure. You can choose to play through the "main game"
by completing missions, working your way up the crime world, and ultimately,
seeing the entire story play out. But there's so much more to do. You'll marvel
at the size and scope of this game the more you play
it.

Extra MissionsAll missions, whether part of the main story, or in
addition to it, can be found in the Missions
area
of this guide. There are certain jobs that are critical to perform to complete the story, and
others which are side-quests. The path through the game determines when these will be opened to
you. When following our main Mission walkthrough, we'll give you hints as
to when these might
happen.

Extra Missions include:

Assassination Missions: Early in the game,
you'll get a cell phone that will lead to many of the Extra Missions in the
game. A mysterious voice will call the cell phone and tell you to get to a
payphone somewhere in the city. There, you'll hear the voice detail a deadly
mission, and leave you instructions how to perform it.

Gang Missions:
The Cubans and Haitians dislike each other intensely. These missions will come
via the cell phone. After you are contacted, go to the Cafe (Little
Havana-Cubans) or to Auntie Poulet's (Little Haiti-Haitians) to trigger them.

Biker Missions:
Mayhem and destruction ensue. These can be done once the biker bar is opened
to you downtown (it's indicated by a Spade on the map). Do a good job for Big
Mitch and he'll reward you.

Love Fist Missions: The world's scummiest rock band has some jobs for you to
do. They'll be available at the V-Rock building, but only after the band
initially contacts you.

Property Missions: After purchasing certain businesses, new challenges will be
opened up to you. For instance, after you buy the Showroom, there is a car
theft mission you can complete to score some brand new rides.

Vehicle Missions: Hopping into certain rides will allow you to trigger
missions to mae some extra cash and bonuses. Press R3 and
you'll be on your way. Vehicles with missions are: Pizza Boy, Taxi, Fire Truck,
Ambulance, Cop Car. You can also find some Checkpoint Races and RC Missions
to keep you busy.

Going on RampagesWhen you find a skull icon somewhere, it's time
for a Rampage. A Rampage calls on you to kill a specific number of gang members
in a required amount of time, using a predetermined weapon. For info on how to
complete each of the 35 Rampages in the game, visit the Rampages
section of our guide.

Finding Hidden PackagesThere are 100 Hidden Packages in the game,
scattered in various unlikely places on the map. Collecting them yields
bonuses that can be added to your safe houses, so it behooves you to start
looking early. All 100 packages, and where to find them (including pictures) are
explained in our Hidden Packages
section.

Performing Insane and Unique Stunt JumpsYou can earn money and
prestige by completing crazy jumps and stunts located throughout the game.
Insane stunts will bring you money and fame (well, at least in the Stats
department), but Unique Stunt Jumps are needed to fully complete the game. Of
course, we've got a Stunt Jumpssection that will help you do
this.

Sticking Up StoresAnother anti-social activity you can engage in
is sticking up various establishments. This is a quick way to get money, and you
need to do it to fully complete the game. Check it out in the Real Estate/Stores section of this guide.

Buying StuffYou make a lot of money for pulling jobs, and need
stuff to spend it on. GTA: Vice City to the rescue! There is tons of stuff to
buy in this game, including real estate property that can be used to make money
of its own.In addition, each time you are sent to get new clothes
in the game, those same duds will be available for you to wear around. For a
more complete description of everything you can buy, and what that does for you,
visit the Real Estate/Storessection of this guide.

In order to 100% the game (as the French say), you'll
have to do many of things anyway. In fact, these are the things you'll have to
accomplish to earn a 100% ranking. We hope to help you do just that:

Complete the Main Story

Complete Extra Missions

Complete All Rampages

Buy All Possible Properties

Perform All 36 Unique Stunt Jumps

Stick Up All Stores

Collect All 100 Hidden Packages

Pick-upsThere are
several pick-ups that you can get throughout the course of the game They are
represented by icons during gameplay. Walk into one of these icons to feel its
effects. These pick-ups will help you get out of trouble in one way or
another:

HeartA Heart pick-up restores your health to full.
These are extremely valuable, espacially when being dogged by people trying to
kill you. Use them when your health is really low... in order not to waste the
full charge of life.

Body ArmorThis basically relegates you another life. It
will appear next to your health meter as another 100. That way, if you're taking
damage, it will have to eat into the Body Armor before actually chipping away at
your health. Make sure you pick some up before heading into any major
mission.

AdrenalineThis will slow the game down Matrix-style and
allow you to perform functions in a slowed-down world. Use this when swarmed
with enemies in order to be able to more readily deal with each baddie
individually. This pick-up also allows you to have super-strength. Any punching
you do will send your opponent flying. You can also push heavy cars around quite
effortlessly.

BribesThese star-shaped icons will lower your wanted
level one star. These can save your life at a three or four star rating, so
memorize their locations and know how to get back there!

Breakin' the Law

Wanted LevelSince you
play the role of criminal in Vice City, your primary opponent is the police. For
the most part, you want to keep a low profile in town... it will allow you to go
about your business more effectively.

To do this, you'll have to avoid doing several things in
front of the police:

Jacking cars: Sure, it's the bread and butter of the
game, but if a cop sees you do it, he will come after you.

Running pedestrians over: As in life, this will draw
attention, especially from the boys in blue.

Shooting people: Pretty obvious. Shoot all you want
when the cops aren't around, but when Johnny Law is in sight, lay off the
trigger. If you shoot a cop, then you're in a world of hurt.

Damaging property: This one is tricky. Cops won't
nail you if are knocking down light poles, but they might take notice if
you're wrecking cars left and right... especially cop cars.

Going into restricted areas: Like the police station.
Going through a sign that says "restricted" will cause a minimum Two Star
wanted level.

A wanted level occurs when a member of law enforcement
sees you do something wrong. There are varying levels of attention you can draw,
based on your offenses. If you do something really bad (like running over a cop
or going on a killing spree), your wanted level will rise rapidly. If you
continue your antisocial behavior, more and more stars will be added to your
wanted level, bringing more law enforcement to bear on you. The higher the
number of stars, the harder it will be for you to move around and not get
caught. In addition, if you're really wanted, the cops will gun you down or run
you over to get you to stop. Otherwise, you'll be busted and have to take a trip
to the police station. Either way, all of your weapons will be stripped from
you, and an arrest will be added to your Stats rap sheet.

Here are the wanted levels and what they mean:

One Star: Any
cop in your immediate area will take note. If on foot, any cop who's also
hoofing it can catch you. If in a car, a squad might follow you, but not too
aggressively. If stopped, you run the risk of a walking cop dragging you from
your ride and busting you. The cops don't have much firepower at this level,
and they're easy to avoid.

Two Stars: If
you're in a vehicle, the coppers will get a little more chippy. Expect to see
two of them in your rear view at all times. They'll try to run you off the
road and corner you so they can rip you out of your ride. If on foot, they may
try to knock you down with their vehicles, or take some shots at you.

Three Stars:
Ahhh... the Cheetah is on the prowl. Undercover cops sporting upturned collars
and autmatic weapons will be added to the chase. These guys are much faster
than average cops... and better drivers, too. In addition to the Cheetahs and
increased police agitation, minor roadblocks will appear. They're easy to
drive around if you see them in time.

Four Stars:
It's starting to get really bad. Instead of roadblocks, the cops pull out the
tire strips to blow out your wheels. You'll also see SWAT vans joining the
party, in addition to Hunter helicopters. If your level is up to four,
definitely get to a Pay N' Spray if possible.

Five Stars: Now
the FBI is in on the action. They don't add all that much to the fun, except
more vehicles to get in your way. They drive black trucks. Know that.

Six Stars: It's
pretty tough to get to the rarified heights of six stars... but it is doable.
In this case, the army is called into action. Unless you're in a Rhino tank
yourself, you're likely screwed. These guys bring assault helis, tanks, trucks
and plenty of soldiers. You know you've been a bad man when it's martial law.

Getting Out of
Trouble

If your wanted level is a mere
one star, all you have to do is stay out of the policeman's eyesight for a bit,
and the wanted level will go away. Pursuit in motor vehicles is weak at best...
so just find a quiet neighborhood to drive around in, or run to a secluded spot
and just wait it out.

One easy way to drop your warning level is to change
clothes. You can do this at your safehouse or go to a store (like Rafael's).
Changing clothes will clear up to a two-star rating. Get used to knowing where
clothing changes are located so you can quickly scoot over and clear your
rating, then continue with your dastardly business.

If the wanted level is higher, you'll be needing to get
your ass to a Pay N' Spray. There are two of them on the map--one as you get off
of the Starfish Island bridge (in Little Havana), and one in the southern tip of
Ocean Beach. To make it happen, drive into the garage. It will cost $100 a pop,
which is hardly anything when you consider you'll stay out of jail for a night.
After you get your car sprayed, you have to be nice for awhile. While your stars
are flashing, you'll have to stay completely out of trouble, or your warning
level will immediately vault back up to its orginal glory.

Another way to whittle away at your wanted level is to
find Bribe icons and walk over them. Doing this will lower your wanted level by
one star, which could be the difference between freedom and the slammer. The
final way to drop a wanted level is to finish a mission. Even if you're at six
stars, the second you finish, the threat will go away.

If You Die or Get Busted...In
the unfortunate circumstance that you die or get busted, you will be taken to
the hospital or hospital immediately. That means you'll lose your current
mission, be stripped of your weapons, and lose some money as well. What's more
frustrating is that you're transported to the nearest place... but that could be
a long distance away from where you were.

Luckily, there's been a taxi added to the GTA
universe that takes you back to the site of your last mission attempt.
Whenever you step outside of the hospital/cop shop, glance across the block. The
cab with a lavender arrow over it is what you're looking for. It will cost $9,
but usually, it's well worth that.

Lost?If ever you don't know where you are in the
city, there are several ways to quickly determine where you're at. First off,
pause the game. The pause screen defaults to a map, and this is easily
searchable.

Another way you can get your bearings is by pausing and
unpausing quickly. Each time you come back to the game, the name of the area
you're in will appear on the screen. You can also use the small inset map in the
bottom left corner of the screen to help find your way. A pink dot will point
the way to your next objective.

Don't Remember
What You're Doing?Since its so easy to get
lost in other activities while playing Vice City, it's easy to forget what
you've been up to. To help you remember, a Brief function can be found at the
pause menu. The Brief screen will display the last few messages you've received,
including Stunt Jump info, and communications with characters.

Track Your
Progress With StatsStats are primarily for
fun, although they also help you keep track of where you are in the game. They
can be found at the Pause menu. The Stats screen tracks all kinds of
statistics--from the wacky to the sadistic. Track how far you are in the game,
how many vehicles you've wrecked, what you cost the police department, how many
people you've killed, how many missions you've completed and what your favorite
radio station has been. There are tons of statistical categories, and they're
all found here. If you select this category, you can scroll and stop the list
using the D-Pad or Analog stick.

At the top of this screen is your Criminal Rating. You
will get both a title and a numerical rank that will reflect your status in the
game. It gets better as you complete more missions. You'll start as a complete
scrub, then work up to Ex Con or Bag Man, or better. Just keep plugging, and
you'll be a criminal mastermind.